It seems that the Global Name Registry has decided to start
selling domains to end users directly.
Check out www.personalnames.com
.
I don't see them on the ICANN accredited registrars list, but that
could just not have been updated yet. I trust they won't just be
bypassing the process.
I also note that they claim they won't be
publishing any of the "personal details" of a user in the whois. I
hope they aren't bypassing any rules that the rest of us must
follow.
From the site
NOTE ON "WHOIS" SERVICE:
Personal Names is committed to
protecting your privacy in the Whois service. Therefore, none of your personal
details will be published in the .name Whois service. You can put your own,
personal details in the Whois service if you wish. To do this, please contact
customer service who will love to be of assistance.
All in all, I think this is something we may want to look into
more. When a Registry simply starts bypassing Registrars, I have great
concerns.
Rob.